5 chilling details about Amy Allan's murder

In September 2018, 34-year-old Amy Allan was discovered unconscious in the basement of her Tecumseh, Michigan, residence. Her husband, James "Jimmy" Allan, informed authorities that after an argument, she had died by suicide. But the physical evidence, statements from witnesses, and the investigative materials pointed to a conclusion beyond that.

Season 8, Episode 15, Dateline features the case of Amy Allan. The episode first aired on September 24, 2024. The episode will re-air on Oxygen on August 9 at 7:00 AM ET.

Prosecutors asserted Jimmy had strangled his wife, Amy Allan, to death, then staged the crime scene to appear that Amy had hanged herself. In September 2021, he was convicted of second-degree murder by a jury. Jimmy Allan was subsequently sentenced to 20 to 45 years in prison.

---

5 chilling details about Amy Allan's murder

1. Family told she was dead while she was on life support

Amy's family learned she was alive for almost 14 hours after the tragedy. Through Jimmy's father, they were notified of her supposed death when, in fact, she was on life support in a hospital. When they got to her bedside, the doctors were preparing to take her off life support, so they only had a few minutes to say goodbye, as reported by Oxygen.

Amy Allan's parents were told that she was dead while she was on life support (Image via Pexels)

---

2. Injuries consistent with a chokehold, not hanging

Despite Jimmy's report of finding Amy hanging, the autopsy report showed no significant external neck trauma normally associated with suspension, but the internal injuries did indicate that she had been placed in a chokehold. The prosecutor's theory was that Jimmy had made her unconscious by wrapping his arm around her neck; then, the extension cord was used to simulate hanging, as reported by lenconnect.com.

---

3. Odd behavior and early death notification

When first responders arrived at the scene, Jimmy was said to have been moaning loudly, but there were no visible tears. A paramedic told him that Amy was still alive and "fighting," to which he seemed surprised at hearing this, and he responded, "Dude, what in the f**ing hell?"

Several hours later, before Amy died, Jimmy's father told Amy's family that she was already dead, causing her family to not fully understand her condition for approximately 14 hours, as reported by Oxygen.

---

4. Discovery of a secret relationship

Investigators discovered that Amy Allan had been involved in an online relationship with someone named George for almost three years. They had met up in person a few times and talked almost daily.

They had considered this relationship as a potential motive, even though Jimmy claimed he was unaware of it. Friends and relatives said that Amy's demeanor was more upbeat when she was speaking to George, as reported by Oxygen.

It was discovered that Amy Allan was in a secret online relationship for three years (Image via Pexels)

---

5. Staging indicators in the extension cord and knots

First responders noticed that the knots in the extension cord were much looser than expected in a true hanging. The cord had a slip knot at Amy's neck, and the other was tied to the hook on the ceiling.

A materials scientist testified that similar cords under Amy's weight would have tightened considerably or elongated, but testing showed the original knots had not been subject to that kind of tension. The prosecution had used this evidence to allege that the scene was staged to appear like a suicide, as reported by lenconnect.com.

Amy Allan's death was initially investigated as a suicide, but a combination of forensic science, witness testimony, and scene evidence resulted in her killing being classified as a homicide.

---

Interested viewers can watch episodes of Dateline on Oxygen.